Organic Placenta Balm by Elemental Beginnings

What's In It?
The placenta balm I make contains the following 100% natural ingredients:

Sunflower Oil*, Coconut Oil*, Beeswax*, Jojoba Oil*, Cocoa Butter*, Shea Nut Butter*, Evening Primrose Oil*, Vitamin E and Rosemary*, Lavender & Sweet Orange* Essential Oils.  
* - certified organic


Some of your dried placenta is used to infuse the balm before the essential oils are added.

Why are essential oils added?
Apart from making this soft balm smell lovely, I chose them for their beneficial properties.

Rosemary
Rosemary is recommended postnatally for exhausted mothers as a temporary relief, especially if she has tension headaches or mild blues.  It may help to reduce oedema (swelling) and the astringent properties of rosemary help contribute to wound healing.  Some cultures apply powdered rosemary to the umbilical cord.

Lavender
Lavender is probably the most versatile essential oil out there.  It is thought to be antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral.  Studies show that lavender may be useful in reducing infections following c-sections or episiotomy.

Sweet Orange
Sweet orange is one of the safest oils to be used for pregnancy and children with it's antiseptic and antibacterial qualities.  This is a relaxing essence and mood uplifter.  It's beneficial action on the skin may help reduce dry skin, dermatitis and striae gravidarum (stretch marks)

How do I use it?
You can use it just like any other balm all over your body.  If you use it on your nipples, please wipe it off before breastfeeding.  The balm needs to be kept below 30 degrees, preferably in the fridge.

You can order your balm as part of your encapsulation package or if you already have some capsules and would like some balm made up, you can post me a couple of capsules for your balm.  Contact me for more details

Perhaps placenta balm isn't for you or you would like to try something different.  My Postnatal Lift Balm is made with the same luxurious ingredients but with different essential oils and of course, no placenta.  You can order yours below.

Any information contained in this post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice.  
Please see your health care provider if you have any concerns.

When you are hiring a professional doula, birth worker or placenta encapsulation specialist they should ask you to sign a contract or agreement. If they don't, ask them why they don't have one.
Contracts set out the obligations of both parties so that everyone is clear on what is expected, help to lesson potential misunderstandings and defines responsibility on both sides.

Here is a list of things you can check when looking for someone to support you during your pregnancy, birth and postpartum:

1. Does it define the provider's scope of practice and their skill set?
2. Does the contract set out in clear terms what services you will receive and when they are available to you?  - Do you know exactly what you are getting for your money?
3. Is it realistic and relative to their expertise or comparable to other service providers in the area with the same skills and experience?
4. When is your Doula on call for you and how and when should you contact them?
5. Do you understand your responsibilities eg communication, payment, things to organise etc ?
6. What happens if your birth worker doesn't provide the services agreed to?  She might offer different options depending on the reasons she couldn't provide the services ie The remedy for you not notifying them about your birth will be different than if she was sick and unable to attend you.  
7. Does the contract clearly state if a back-up is available to you, under what circumstances refunds or credit for the provider's other services may be offered?
8. How do you go about adding in extra services from your specialist if you decide you want these later down the track and what are the payment options?
9. Does the agreement let you know when your payments are due so you can plan for it in your budget?  Please let your birth professional know if you can't make a payment on time so a mutually agreeable arrangement can be made.  We understand things can happen beyond your control but we hate chasing clients for payments as much as the next person.

Remember that while birth-work is a heart calling for many of us and a job we love, it is still a business that needs to be run with sustainability.  Would you ask other service providers like your hairdresser, mechanic or dentist for that discount, extra service for free or forget to pay them all of their fee they have worked hard for?

I chose cord burning as our means of separating bubs from his placenta because I thought it was a lovely, gentle ritual that all the family could be involved in if they chose to.  Our homebirth midwives were great and left us alone as a family for the 5 hours after birth and came back later in the afternoon once we'd burned the cord to do the all important weigh in and measuring.  There was no need to clamp or tie the cord as the burning cauterises during the process.

It took about 10 minutes for the cord to burn through, with a couple of hisses and pops from the cord gasses.  There wasn't a bad smell as some worry about.  I had planned on getting some nice taper candles and a wooden box (like this one) but time ran out on me so we just used standard house candles and a pyrex bowl to catch the wax. Once he was separated from his cord, our placenta went into the fridge to be encapsulated the next day and everyone else had their first cuddles.

The end of the cord did leave some soot on bubs and his clothes and became a little sharp once the cord started to dry but we were able to coil it so it sat over his nappy.  I'd certainly choose to do it again and wish I'd known about it for my other children.

If you've just had a baby and have older children, it's always handy to have a few activities planned to keep them busy while you care for bubs. 

One of the things I organised came from an idea I saw for baby showers - onesie designing!  All you need is a few plain light coloured onesies and some fabric markers. We added a few stencils to the mix as well.

Here is what my children and their Grandma came up with (aged 4, 7 & 13)  for their new baby brother.
Unique, custom clothing, complete with spelling mistakes, made with more love than anything you'll find in the shops. They also make a great keepsake to showcase your children's awesome design skills

I love that it's a cheap, technology free activity, you can lay on the couch while your kids are busy and the look on their faces when they see their baby brother wearing the top they made for him is super cute

So I'm due to have baby #4 any time in the next few weeks and besides setting up the birth pool I think I'm all organised and ready to go.  Am I planning on taking my own advice and having a babymoon?  Most certainly - I plan on staying in bed for the first 2-3 days after birth!  Here are some of the support and services I have lined up :

Birth & Postnatal Doula - I have hired a lovely doula that I have known for a few years to support me during birth and in the weeks after birth.  I chose Diana for her calming presence, open heart and knowledge that she will support me in the choices I make for my birth and postnatal period.  I feel comfortable having her around me, my children and in my home during those private, vulnerable, joyful and raw moments that are sure to occur.

Birth Photographer -  This is the last time I will be pregnant, the last time I will give birth, the last time I will get to hold my newborn baby in my arms.  I want to have those moments captured for me and my family even if no-one else gets to see them (although I'm sure I'll share some of them)  This baby's birth day is as special a time as a wedding, anniversary or any other special occasion.  I can't wait to see what Victoria captures

Meals - I have set up a meal roster using mealtrain.com where friends and family can choose a day that suits them and schedule in what meal they would like to bring our family.  This is a free online service that anyone can use for any reason.  It shows our address, meal preferences/allergies etc, drop off times etc and only required about 15 minutes for me to set it all up, the rest is automatic.  It means our family doesn't have to worry about what is for dinner or the children can have a healthy, freezable school lunch ready made for them.  Both are things that will be a practical help to us and one less thing to worry about while we settle into our new family rhythm.

Housework - If you want to visit our new family be prepared to work for it!  I'll have a list of suggestions on our family whiteboard for you.  Perhaps hang out a load of washing, pick up the children's toys with them, wipe the crumbs off the kitchen table or get the junk mail out the letterbox and put it in the recycling for us.  It might only take you 30 seconds and I'll probably have a twinge of 'supermum' guilt letting you to do it but I'll remind myself that it is okay to ask for  help and be grateful that I have my village of support willing to help me.


These are just a few of the things I have in place to support our family.  What would you choose?